Luminaire assembly



y 1966 F. VAN STEENHOVEN 3,250,912

LUMINAIRE ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 26, 1963 ATTORNEYS y 1966F. VAN STEENHOVEN 3,250,912

LUMINAIRE ASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed July 26, 1965 INVENTOR. Feml/WJTA-ENHOVEN ATTOR NE Y6 i in particular to United States Patent phaneCompany, Inc., New York, N.Y., a corporation of Delaware Filed July 26,1963, Ser. No. 297,895 Claims. .(Cl. 240-11.4)

The present invention relates to lighting fixtures and integrallyballasted mercury vapor luminaires.

' The presently accepted practice for the installation of mercury vaporluminaires includes, in general, two steps, after the ballast assemblyand luminaire have each been purchased separately. The ballast assemblyin its individual container is mounted to a ceiling or a structuralmember, and the conduit is installed leading from the ballast assemblyto the point where the luminaire is to be positioned. The electricalwiring from the secondary of the ballast assembly is then pulled throughthe conduit andconnected to the lamp socket on the luminaire. It is thennecessary to remove the socket from the luminaire, connect the wiringfrom the ballast secondary to the socket,.and re-install the wiredsocket to the luminaire. Due to the present-day high labor costs, inmany instances dual installation of the type mentioned above is equal toor sometimes even greater than the cost of the luminaire. Accordingly,it is an object of this invention to simplify the installation ofmercuryyapor luminaires and their corresponding ballast assemblies.

,Another object of this invention is to reduce the cost of suchinstallation.

. ;It is also an object of the present invention to provide anintegrally ballasted mercury vapor. luminaire.

- Still another object of the present invention is to provide improvedballast assemblies.

Other and further objects of this invention will be apparent from thefollowing description and claims and may be understood by referencetothe accompanying drawings, which, by way of illustration, show preferredembodiments of the invention and what is now considered to be the bestmode of applying the principles thereof.'

lnsthe present invention a potting compound is prepared and poured intothe ballast assembly housing containing the electrical components andwires, at the place of manufacture. Thus, the electrical components andwires, excluding the ends-of each wire which connect to the power supplyleads and to the bulb socket of the luminaire, are convenientlyencapsulated. The compound poured in and around the electricalcomponents and wires serves to bond them in the capsule. The top of theluminaire assembly is connected to the bottom of the ballast assembly byany suitable means. Wires leading from the secondary of the ballast aredetachably secured to the bulb socket in the luminaire. The luminaireassembly and the ballast assembly are positioned such that the socketfor the luminaire extendsto the bottom of the ballast assembly, therebyaffording a convenient means for connecting the leads from the secondary of the ballast to the socket.

The ballast assembly includes a conduit adapter and supply wire chuteand captive cover plate positioned over an access hole. The combinationof the adjustable conduit adapter and access hole provides a convenientmeans for connecting electrical supply wires to theends of the primaryof the ballast.

For other objects and a better understanding of this invention referencemay be had to the following detailed description taken in connectionwith the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of the lighting fixture assembly of thisinvention, partially broken away.

FIG. 2 is a view partially in section taken along line 2-2 of FIGURE 1.

FIG. 3 is an elevational view, partially in section, of the top portionof the ballast assembly of this invention.

FIG. 4 is a top view partially in section and looking down into theballast housing with the cover removed and taken substantially alonglines 4-4 of FIG. 3.

Referring now to the drawings, wherein similar reference numeralsindicate corresponding parts throughout the several views, 10 representsthe lighting fixture assembly, substantially as shown.

As shown in FIG. 1, the lighting fixture assembly 10 includes areflector 12 connected to a yoke assembly 14. The yoke assembly includestwo opposing plates, each plate including two L-shaped members 16 andhorizontal legs 18. Reflector 12 is connected to yoke assembly 14through opposing connector assemblies 20. These assemblies each includegenerally U-shaped brackets 22 pivotally mounted at an end on respectiverods 24 secured between horizontal legs 18 of the opposing plates of theyoke assembly. Pins 26 connected to collar 28 of reflector 12 orreflector support, as the case may be, engage U-shaped brackets 22. Thesocket 30, extending downwardly within reflector 12, is connected toballast housing 32 by any suitable means. The housing 32 is constructedof cast aluminum, in this embodiment, to take advantage of the strengthand maximum heat transfer of aluminum.

ticularly during shipment of the fixture.

Housing 32 is secured to yoke assembly 14 by any suitable means. Withinthe top portion 34 of housing 32 a wiring chute 36 is secured to theinside of the top portion by self tapping screws38. The wiring chute 36,as seen more clearly from FIG. 4, includes sides 40 and runway 42. Chute36 is set at an angle inclined from the horizontal, as viewed in FIG. 2.A grounding lug 44 is connected to the bottom of runway 42 by a selftapping screw 46. A wire lead opening 48 is situated near the top of theinclined wiring chute 36 to provide the passage therethrough ofelectrical. leads 68. A pivotally supported access cover 50 is hinged tothe top portion 34 of housing 32, as shown in FIG. 2, by a round headscrew 52. The end 54 of round head screw 52 is swaged to prevent thescrew, and necessarily the access cover from falling off the housing andperhaps becoming lost, par- As best seen from FIG. 3 the access cover 50may be rotated, after round head screw 52 has been loosenedsufiiciently, to the open position shown. Rotating the access cover tothe open position provides a convenient means by which an electricianmay complete the circuit connection, to be described more fullyhereinbelow.

A top cover 56 is secured to housing 32 by lock screws 58. A rotatableconduit adapter 60 is secured to top cover 56 by lock nut 62. Theconduit adapter and lock nut combine to provide a convenient means ofinstallation. The look nut is made finger tight at the place ofmanufacture to permit an installation electrician to loosen the locknut, while holding housing 32, and then screw the conduit adapter onto asupply conduit (now shown). The lock nut may be tightened after theassembly has been properly attached and oriented in the positiondesired.

The ballast components capacitors 64 and transformer 66 are inserted atthe place of manufacture within housing 32. Electrical leads 68 and 70extend from the ballast components through openings 48 and 72respectively. Leads 72 are secured to quick disconnect lugs 74 which arein turn electrically connected to socket 30. The portion of leads 68which extend through openings 48 are left loosely hanging on wiringchute 36. When the ballast components and their electrical leads havebeen installed at the place of manufacture they are subsequentlyencapsulated with an asphalt potting compound 76. By encapsulating theballast components they are made dust, bug and moisture proof, therebysubstantially increasing their useful life. In addition, the compoundserves to efliciently remove heat from the components to the housing 32where it is quickly dissipated in the ambient atmosphere.

When the pre-wired units are received at the place of installation it ismerely necessary for the electrician to take the electrical supply leads7'8 and connect them to leads 68 by conventional connector elements 80.Grounding wire 82 is also easily connected to grounding lug 44. Toaccomplish the foregoing, the electrician need only loosen screw 52 androtate the access cover 180 to provide him with an opening from which hemay easily pull the wires, which have been guided to access opening 84by the construction of chute 36. It is then a simple matter, after theconnections have been made, to push the connected leads back into thewiring chute, swing the access cover shut, and securely lock it in placeby tightening screw 52. The wiring chute thus obviates the necessity offishing or groping for Wires within the housing, as required in previousunits. In addition, the placement of the ballast housing above thereflector permits continuance of the vented open top reflector. Theresulting chimney action reduces main tenance by helping to keep thereflector free from dust.

While various embodiments of the invention have been shown and describedin detail to illustrate the application of the inventive principles, itshould be understood that the invention may be embodied otherwisewithout departing from such principles, and the invention should not belimited except as set forth in the following claims.

I claim:

1. In a lighting fixture including a luminaire supporting member, anelectrical socket and a ballast assembly, said ballast assemblybeing'secured tolsaid socket and supporting member, the improvementcomprising a housing having side walls exposed at their outer surfacesto the atmosphere and having an access opening therethrough, a ballastcircuit Within said housing, the output of said ballast circuit beingelectrically connected to said socket, and the ends of the inputconductors of said ballast circuit being situated adjacent said accessopening, conduit means in said housing for receiving the condu'ctors ofan external circuit, said conduit means being spaced from said accessopening and sloping towards said a-ccess opening for guiding theconductors of the external circuit adjacent said access opening forconnection to the input conductors of said ballast circuit.

2. In the lighting fixture of claim 1, wherein said conduit meanscomprises a portion externally of said housing, said portion includingmeans independently movable for securing said ballast housing to anexternal conduit carrying the conductors of the external circuit.

3. In the lighting fixture of claim- 1, wherein said ballast circuit ismounted within said housing at one end thereof and said access opening,said conduit means and said means for guiding the conductor of theexternal circuit are mounted at the other end of said housing, saidconduit means being spaced from said access opening, said guiding meanscomprising a chute sloping from said conduit means to said accessopening, said chute being formed With access means for accommodating theends of the input conductors of said ballast circuit.

4. A lighting fixture comprising a lum-inaire supporting member, anelectrical socket and a ballast assembly, said ballast assembly beingsecured to said socket and supporting member, and comprising a housinghaving an access portion and a ballast circuit within said housing,

the output of said circuit being electrically connected to said socket,and the ends of the input conductors of said circuit being situated insaid access portion-, and means enabling the introduction of theconductors of an external circuit into said access portion, said accessportion including an aperture in said housing and a runway slopingtowards said aperture, said means for introducing includes a coverdetachably secured to the top of said housing, and means for securingsaid cover to an electrical conduit.

5. A lighting fixture comprising a luminaire supporting member, anelectrical socket and a ballast assembly, said ballast assembly beingsecured to said socket and supporting member, and comprising a housinghaving an access portion and a ballast circuit within said housing, theoutput of said circuit being electrically connected to said socket, andthe ends of the input conductors of said circuit being situated in saidaccess portion, and means enabling the introduction of the conductors ofan external circuit into said access portion, said access portionincluding an aperture in said housing and a runway sloping towards saidaperture, said means for introducing includes a cover deta'chablysecured to the top of said housing, means for securing said cover to anelectrical conduit, and said components of said ballast circuit areencapsulated within said housing.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,038,506 4/1936Cadieux 240l1.4 X 2,476,856 7/ 1949 Geenans 2401l.4 X 1 2,7 40,905 4/1956 Henderson. 2,903,662 9/1959 Harvey 17452 X 2,972,676 2/ 1961 Moser.

NORTON ANSH ER, Primary Examiner.

CHAR-LES R. RHODES, Assistant Examiner.

1. IN A LIGHTING FIXTURE INCLUDING A LUMINAIRE SUPPORTING MEMBER, ANELECTRICAL SOCKET AND A BALLAST ASSEMBLY, SAID BALLAST ASSEMBLY BEINGSECURED TO SAID SOCKET AND SUPPORTING MEMBER, THE IMPROVEMENT COMPRISINGA HOUSING HAVING SIDE WALLS EXPOSED AT THEIR OUTER SURFACES TO THEATMOSPHERE AND HAVING AN ACCESS OPENING THERETHROUGH, A BALLAST CIRCUITWITHIN SAID HOUSING, THE OUTPUT OF SAID BALLAST CIRCUIT BEINGELECTRICALLY CONNECTED TO SAID SOCKET, AND THE ENDS OF THE INPUTCONDUCTORS OF SAID BALLAST CIRCUIT BEING SITUATED ADJACENT SAID ACCESSOPENING, CONDUIT MEANS IN SAID HOUSING FOR RECEIVING THE CONDUCTORS OFAN EXTERNAL CIRCUIT, SAID CONDUIT MEANS BEING SPACED FROM SAID ACCESSOPENING AND SLOPING TOWARDS SAID ACCESS OPENING FOR GUIDING THECONDUCTORS OF THE EXTERNAL CIRCUIT ADJACENT SAID ACCESS OPENING FORCONNECTION TO THE INPUT CONDUCTORS OF SAID BALLAST CIRCUIT.